The study of attractive effects of artificial reef models on Apostichopus japonicas

Abstract:

The experiment on artificial reef enhancement of Apostichopus japonicas was carried out for its application in aquaculture. In the experiments, enhancement with or without artificial reef model,the effect of five reef models of different shape but the same material, and two different material reef models of the same shape were compared. The results showed that the difference of mean attractive rate (MAR) of all artificial reef models were significant (P<0.01) compared with non-reef models. The MAR of the pipe shaped reef model was the highest and the difference is significant (P<0.05) compared with the other four shaped reef models. MAR of two different materials of reef models in triangular shape was not significant (P>0.05) and the MAR of the reef made of concrete was higher than that made of marble. It is suggested that stones can also have attractive effects on Apostichopus japonicas.